The first debate is over and did we really learn anything new from the two candidates? Not in what they said. Anyone who has been following the race has heard both sides to the story. But there is one component of the debate that left me unsettled. Throughout the debate Senator McCain refused to look at Barack Obama; not when the Arizona Senator spoke about Obama and not when Obama was addressing Senator McCain’s stance. Why is that a big deal? Senator McCain speaks about his ability to reach across the aisle and make compromises. He rails about the climate in Washington; the partisan nature of politics. But in his first opportunity to express himself to the nation he looked down, out across the audience and at Jim Lehrer but never at Barack Obama, the leader of the party that he hopes one day to unite with his own to change Washington. This aspect of the debate should tell you more than you need to know about the self-proclaimed maverick. Never in my life have I seen such poor manners.

What was the tenor of the debate for Barack Obama? He engaged Senator McCain. He looked McCain squarely at his face, which the Arizona Senator kept fixed on the horizon. In the course of the debate Obama frequently eluded to points which he shared with McCain. A fact that McCain’s camp quickly seized on for political gain by making an advertisement saying Senator Obama takes McCain’s policies. But don’t we want a President who will unashamedly highlight the opposition party’s strengths in negotiations and debates while at the same time sticking to their key principles? Isn’t that the climate that we want to change in Washington?

If Senator McCain can’t make eye contact during a personal Presidential debate, what will be his stance with people in the Democratic party while he is President? For me, John McCain’s failure wasn’t so much in what he said, it was in his body language that spoke volumes. This should give everyone pause.